Post subject: Would the Falcon's attempt to draft Calvin Johnson or not?

Posted: Fri Dec 22, 2006 2:58 am

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Joined: Mon Jan 17, 2005 7:02 pmPosts: 6601Location: Indianapolis IN

I think this is an interesting question since receiver is a weakness for the Falcon's,Johnson is from Georgia Tech and Johnson's size/speed ratio is off the charts.Here's the question would the falcon's attempt to move up in the draft to draft johnson or will they settle for what they have?

The Falcon's are going to get a playmaker whether they draft 5 or 18 but is Johnson that much superior at his position than say a guy like Landry of LSU? Considering that there really are not free agent receivers worth a hoot that could vastly upgrade the receiver position its a possibility.I know the falcon's have invested 2 no1s at the position but remember these were low 1st round picks not top 5.

Johnson has incredible size and speed for the position,has great stats in college with a QB that wasn't very good getting the ball. Johnson is a huge target and somenone vick could find on the field easily. Does johnson run good routes,can he break away from corners and out muscle them like a Terrell Owens?

Remember the draft when the Falcon's wanted Roy Williams but ended up with Deangelo Hall? Would this be an attempt to get the big receiver needed?

Do the Falcon's have enough ammunition even to get a top 5 pick since johnson should be a top 5 pick? Teams that will be top 5 are going to want a mint and they do not like to move down so far they don't have a shot at an impact player. The Falcon's have Schaub and there no1 pick currently 14th.In my opinion they would have to lose the next 2 games and trade schaub in the deal even to get close to the no5 pick. Is that to much to give up for another college receiver?

Also consider is schaub the QB many teams will go after out of the backups in the league?
Will visit this debate after game 16 that way we will know the falcon's no1 pick slot. I just think johnson and the falcon's would make an interesting pair.Then again those who want the defense to improve will be screaming for a defensive playmaker and this draft has them.

_________________Sometimes running the Mularkey offense makes me feel like I'm in a prison.

Wow,read this summary of Johnson from NFL DratBlitz! Is Johnson another Mike williams?

Name: Calvin Johnson

School: Georgia Tech Character: //

Position: WR Intelligence: //
Class: 2008 Competitiveness: +
Height: 6'5" Toughness: +
Weight: 235 Leadership: //
40 Time: 4.53 Work ethic: +
DOB: 9/15/85 Injury history: Minor
Hands: - Calvin may have the best hands in the country
- Typically catches the ball out away from his body
- Can snatch the ball at it highest point in the air
- Looks the ball into his hands
Patterns: - Exhibits good body control
- Runs better then average routes, but they can improve
- Changes directions well for a big guy
- Able to stop on a dime and cut back
Receive Long / Short: - A serious downfield threat
- Uses his body well to shield defenders from the ball
- Shows the ability to catch the ball over his shoulder cleanly
Run After Catch: - His combination of size, power and speed make him a YAC machine
- Catches the ball in stride
- Surprisingly elusive in the open field
Blocker: - Willing blocker downfield
- Doesn't always look to engage at the second level
- Strong enough to be a dominating blocker for a WR
- Tends to be used as a decoy to draw defenders
- When he does engage, he doesn't sustain very long
Release: - Can simply outmuscle defensive backs at the line
- Doesn't get held up easily
- Slippery in space and tough to block
React to Ball / Crowd: - Prefers to work on the outside and down the field rather then in the middle
- Reacts well to the ball in the air / major jump ball threat
- Unstoppable in the redzone
Initial Quickness: - Faster then you expect him to be
- Doesn't have elite speed, but he's a smooth runner
- Gets up to top speed quickly
Overall: It's difficult to find things to complain about when breaking down Calvin Johnson. The worst thing that you can say about him is that he reminds me a bit of Mike Williams when he was at USC (like Williams, Johnson better not outgrow the position, but he's simply not a good blocker and wouldn't make for much of a tight end). Johnson needs to make sure he doesn't get to bit and outgrow the wide receiver position. He also needs to keep his weight in check so that he doesn't lose his quickness. It's also worth pointing out that he's managed to put up exceptional numbers while playing with a quarterback who has below average passing skills.

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_________________Sometimes running the Mularkey offense makes me feel like I'm in a prison.

I personally would love to have Johnson on the Falcons, but is it out most pressing need? I don't know. I mean I think Johnson will be the man to whatever team he goes too and I think he will be a great WR in the NFL. I just don't think it's our most pressing need. If we use our #1 on Landry and then somehow get a #1 for Schuab then we could pick up and OL or DL with that pick so we would be helping two of our needs instead of one. I don't know. This is a great question. We have a lot of holes to fill. It just comes down to what we need most.

From what I've seen of Johnson, I'm not sure where I would rate him. He's definitely a mega talent. But so were Charles Rogers, Mike Williams, and Reggie Williams.

Even if the Falcons were to get in a position to draft Johnson, do you make the move? Johnson is a WR. WRs 9 times out of 10 (probably even higher than that) don't do much as rookies. You start them 16 games and you hope they catch the ball 35 times. If you get that then you're happy with their rookie performance. Any more is just icing on the cake.

So you ask yourself how much improvement is the passing game going to get next year if Johnson is on the team? Do you pass on a player like an OL, DL, or CB that is much more likely to have an immediate impact + future impact? Or do you take the guy with the huge upside, that may or may not live up to it.

They say Johnson disappears at times. Most blame it on Reggie Ball. Another past WR that "disappeared" in big games was Larry Fitzgerald. He too had a subpar QB in Rod Rutherford. But the difference may be in Fitzgerald he had a great set of hands and the sort of body control and ability to pluck any ball out the air that made you think he was the secret govt. genetic experiment of splicing Marvin Harrison and Randy Moss's DNA together.

I wouldn't want to pick in the top 3 or 5 this year. Just because of the contract sizes. Anybody picked in the Top 3 or 5 would probably have a contract worth anywhere between $40-60 million, and guaranteed money between $20 and $30 million. Sorry but nobody currently projected in the Top 5 is anything special. Johnson is good, but they'll be another great WR along in a year or two. Quinn? Any better than Palmer Manning or any of the other top QBs taken over the past 3 or so years? Joe Thomas? I'd rather hold out next year for Jake Long. Alan Branch? Can you say Ngata or Vince Wilfork. Sorry but no thanks.

I'd much rather take the Raiders #2 and #3 than their #1.

I believe the current cap runs thru 2011. If Roger Goodell is smart, next time they get to the negotiating table, he is going to institute a much stricter cap on rookie contracts, and basically adopt a similar "slotting" system as the NBA.

See at this current rate of increasing about 10% in guaranteed money each year for the No. 1 pick. By the time the 2011 draft rolls around, the #1 pick will be receiving between $40-45 million in guaranteed money, which is more than $34.5 million and $37 million that Manning and Vick received, respectively, the highest yet in NFL history.

It's not going to be long from now that the No. 1 pick will immediately be the highest paid player in the league, without having ever played a down.

I really don't see top 5 talent there to tell you the truth. Each and every draft there are other round picks producing better then top 5 and 1st round picks... I like the idea of more picks. We need as much young, quality, and cheap depth as possible...

I really don't see top 5 talent there to tell you the truth. Each and every draft there are other round picks producing better then top 5 and 1st round picks... I like the idea of more picks. We need as much young, quality, and cheap depth as possible...

I mean, this isn't a poor draft class by any means. But nothing special. Most draft sites you go to would have guys like Quinn, JaMarcus Russell, Calvin JOhnson, Joe Thomas, and Gaines Adams as the probable consensus Top 5 players (or projected Top 5 picks) in this year's draft. But when we look at the past few drafts, do these names stand out moreso than other top prospects like Eli Manning, Palmer, Terrell Suggs, Mario Williams, Gallery, Bryant McKinnie, Charles Rogers, or Fitz?

At least in '04, they had Sean Taylor and K2, players at positions that rarely featured their sort of athleticism, and a group of WRs that seemed as good as any seen in a decade.

Obviously not all drafts are equal, but that's something you really can't gauge until 4 or 5 years down the road.

But I say 2 2nd round picks are just as valuable as a 1st. So I say if a team offers a #2 for Schaub, then by all means trade him! Give me Marcus McNeill and Maurice Jones-Drew over just D'Brickashaw Ferguson.

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